Calculating whether I'm serious.
I am.
I've never been more serious about anything in my life.
Finally, with shaking hands, she reaches for the hem of her sweater.
This is it.
This is the moment where everything changes.
Where she learns.
Where she understands.
Where she discovers what happens when you run from me, and there's no going back from this.
For either of us.
CHAPTER NINE
Eden
"Strip."
The word hangs in the air between us like a threat.
Like a promise.
Like the beginning of something I can't come back from.
I stare at Vaughn, my heart hammering so hard I can feel it in my throat, in my fingertips, in every nerve of my body that's screaming at me to run even though there's nowhere left to run to.
Even though he just dragged me back from the woods.
Even though the hunt is over and he won.
His bedroom is massive.
Overwhelming in its masculine opulence.
Dark wood furniture that looks hand-carved and probably costs more than most people make in a year.
Floor-to-ceiling windows showing nothing but forest and darkness beyond—a view that would be beautiful if it didn't remind me how isolated we are, how far from help, how completely alone I am with him.
A bed that could fit four people dominates the space.
King-sized at minimum, maybe bigger.
Dark gray sheets that look like they cost a fortune.
Pillows arranged with precision.
Everything is expensive, controlled, and perfect.
Just like him.
Except right now, he doesn't look controlled at all.
